I know over the past few months I have been doing a lot on the birds that are seen around Phuket, from the many different birds of prey to the tiny flowerpeckers and sunbirds that are smaller than many butterflies here in Phuket
While out getting my photos for birds I slowly found I was seeing more and more different things too that previously I had no interest in and hardly noticed before. Throughout the southwest monsoon season we get a fair bit of rain which not only brings very fast growth to all the plants and flowers but also all the things attracted by them. When the sun breaks through we get huge numbers of stunning butterflies around all the fresh flowers that are appearing everywhere.
I am not a butterfly expert in any way, but it doesn’t mean I can’t sit back in the sun and be happy in the peace and quiet watching hundreds of different coloured butterflies flitting past me listening to the bird song overhead.
Here are some of the more common ones I see around Phuket:
The Blue Pansy
This is a very common butterfly found on grassy areas at the side of roads and footpaths as well as more open grassy areas. They are said to be quite territorial but I see them here in large numbers all together. Not as big as many other butterflies here, around 4-5cm wingspan.
Painted Jezebel
Again fairly common all over Southeast Asia but quite often missed as it tends to be higher up (or as far as I have seen it) on the flowers of larger shrubs and trees. Very colourful and easy to recognise with its red and yellow flashes on the white wings makes them really stand out in the sunlight. They again are of a medium size, around 4-5cm.
Great Mormon
Now moving on to the bigger ones we see around. There are two main types of the Mormon butterfly. The Common Mormon and the Great Mormon. Both have similar colouring but the Great being of a larger size. The common Mormon being 7-11cm and the great Mormon up to 13.5cm. Both are swallow-tailed butterflies and very colourful. The female is the more colourful with the males being without the swallowtails and being of a black or very dark blue colour.
Common Tiger
This is a very common sight all over Phuket. There really are thousands of them. What makes them look more common is that the male and female look very similar. They are 7-8cm in wingspan and very brightly coloured. They seem to live again on grass verges and areas with grass and small flowers. They range from India and all over Asia and Singapore. Nevertheless, it is a really attractive sight to see masses of them all in the bright sunlight.
Leopard Lacewing
Lastly the Leopard Lacewing is another medium-size butterfly seen from India to Southern China. It’s slightly smaller than most at around, about 5cm in wingspan. This, too, is easily identified with its bright orange wing outlines with black and splashes of white to the wing tips. The link to the name is the frilly edges to the wings. Again, pretty easy to see as they (when I see them) seem to be just sunning themselves on larger leaves. This butterfly only made it to Singapore in 2005 so it just shows that butterflies are still migrating around the planet.
These are just a few of the more common sights as there really are hundreds of different species here but it’s always good to know the common names of the things that we see around us everyday.
I know I have done a few different articles covering various sea birds, birds of prey, beaches and all manner of wildlife through the seasons here in Phuket, as I love all things in the natural world and love photography. So if anyone knows any great sights I will be happy to explore them. I know here on the island there are wild boar and the elusive white squirrel too, so if anyone knows where I can find these I would love to know where, as well as any other interesting wildlife.
Simon Lomas is an expat who has been living in Phuket for more than 12 years, and takes enjoying nature and the island’s surroundings to heart.